Robyn O'Flaithfhileadh

Tuesday, September 10, 2013

Green Bay Memories

Kaap's Restaurant

http://www.kaapscandies.com/history.php

1. My first experience in Kaaps Restaurant was probably around the time of my birth 1948, which now seems like a long time ago. I was born to eat their: chocolate covered candy, fresh real vanilla and chocolate ice cream with tiny bits of frozen ice, their mint ice-cream served in a chilled silver dish with dark chocolate syrup draped over the top. I was born to sit in an exotic smoky booth and watch my mother busy charming the bartender. I was born to get my first stuffed toy that smelled of food and cigarettes. That when I pressed my nose to the dog’s fake fur I’d see a whole world come into view. A world of festive people at Christmas time when Kaaps would decorate their two front windows. It was a magical world framed by spray-on snow. I was balanced on the tips of my toes to get a look. My Lou’s Bootery black Mary Jane patent-leather shoes bending and cutting into the top of my foot. What pain did I notice? The slushy snow chilling. What cold did I notice? The inside of this fairy tale world held my attention, my imagination. That’s when I noticed my favorite toy. The stuffed creature that would be my best friend for years to come.

Thursday, September 05, 2013

1948-1960's Food:Bilotti's Pizza:
http://www.bilottispizzagarden.com
Bilotti's opened in 1956. It was established by Ray Bilotti in De Pere where it remains to this day. As a teenager in 1961 to1966 we always called it Danny's pizza and would come from Green Bay to the parlor as a group. It was "The Place to Be". Usually we crammed into one booth. We were always starved and the pizza came out piping hot but of course we'd pull out a slice and begin to gulp down the delicious cheese topping, sauce, and thin crust in one bite. I was often tempted to order something other than a pizza but to no avail. I simply adored their food, which won a place in my memory bank of delicious pizza pie. Kroll's East:
http://www.krollseastgreenbay.com/
Kroll's East has been open since 1935. I am sure we ate their food since 1948. My mother, Peggy Murray Flatley loved the homemade dumpling soup. She literally hummed while she was eating the soup. The chili was terrific. My sister loved the burger with a pat of butter on their very special buns. My father loved the perch plate with the bones, he swore it tasted better that way. But my favorite was their fish burger which was called a seaburger.

(Seaburger in on the top left of the picture)

I tried ordering a seaburger anywhere else in the world and they would look confused and say"what did you want?!!"

When I attended East High School, a group of us would pile into Pam's car and rush over to Kroll's for lunch. We stuffed ourselves into a booth. The place was always hopping. We would put money into the Juke Box selection that was at every booth. Then we'd play a game with the song titles and after each title we'd add the words- 'under the covers'. This game would keep us laughing til the food appeared. I was starved and once the seaburger was placed in front of me I would rip open the carefully wrapped burger, bite into the crusty roll, oozing with tartar sauce, a pat of melting butter, fresh lightly breaded and deep fried fish and practically swoon. Oh god, could life get any better than this! Butter may have run down my chin but I was too busy chewing to worry about how I looked.

As a family we would come in on Friday and order perch plate with or without the bones. Can you imagine...Lake perch! I currently live in New England and there's nothing like that Lake perch. Nothing! My parents would wave to friends from our large active table of seven family members. Their friend were in family groups as well. It was a community experience, it was the place to be on Friday night.

Saturday, July 27, 2013

The apple tree bloomed in May with tiny white blossoms. A gentle breeze picked up the scent and tossed peddles into the air. By the end of May the grass became a white carpet. In June small green fists of fruit hung from a multitude of branches. A summer storm shook all the round unripened fruit to the ground. The apple tree rotted from inside out and became a hollow center encircled by curling dark brown bark.

Wednesday, August 31, 2011

2.
I have always loved a good storm. My first stop on the computer every morning is Weather Underground. There are a few of weatherophiles in town and everyday I try to check in with them about the hottest topic. Lately that has been Houston, Texas, and I do mean hot. My skin goes to goosebumps when we talk about a weather happening. Well this weekend there was such a happening and Irene made her way to my door.

1.
My time line is all jumbled up from trauma. I remember it started to rain. We watched over one hundred Nighthawks attempt to migrate Saturday night. Nighthawks are a delicate part of our ecosystem. I rarely see more than a few dozen migrating yearly. The interesting thing is they did not fly into the storm but took a sharp right turn. I felt a flutter of hope.
Hurricane Irene's eye was threatening to pass through the heart of our little town. Yes it rained, a fine mist all night and by daybreak the rain came in waves from her outer bands. The song of rain went from music to menacing and yet we really had no clue of what was come.

Saturday, August 13, 2011

I am still searching for solid ground. Floating in an a sea of sadness. No sense to what happened, no reason can calm the storm of emotions. I don't search for the mind or the emotions or the personality to make this okay. It seems to be within the realm of soul, of spirit I see one man free and the other in chains. I am pierced through the heart with love for my friends.
Today I spoke of this violence, touched my own wound, less than yesterday. Each day I grow into who I am becoming. I am changed. We are all changed. Our ground for tomorrow will be waiting for us in the future. I am here now riding the wave of today. Breath to bone: Transformed.

Sunday, January 17, 2010

mean has four letters-just a wordI move around.a razor rock in my riverof emotion.a tar pit.rules of the war-game variedonly certain people could embody mean.drawing blood signaledthe opponent could close in.I imagined a gaspfrom the silent witness...words did kill.

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

Love prose poem in brown1.Ed worked construction all of his life. During this deep dig the back hoe machine teetered awkwardly as it raked it's teeth across the chocolate brown earth. The rest of the crew stood on the edges of the crater as the machine’s bucket scrapped and revealed the old metal pipe. Ed was struck by an electrical jolt. He didn’t move. The machine reached to pull him out of the pit. Ed looked flushed as his hand touched the machine. They froze in that position. Both the machine and Ed died that day. Ed with a smile on his face.2.Ed found the great vein of oil bleed out. He tenderly felt for a pulse. Ancient blood from bodies older than himself had been spent. Wars were raging over this precious black gold. Ed chained the beast and as he turned to leave the freshly dug pit a mechanical tendril reached out and pulled him under. Ed's blood mixed with oil and a cheer rang out from all the oil rigs, holding tanks and sucking machines that crisscrossed over and penetrated through the earth.3.Ed loved the bucket. He had danced around the metal claw for days. Ed's wife observed that he couldn't contain himself. He had climbed out of the earthen pit and touched the bucket gently. His wife fainted, the children shrieked. The bucket held very still as Ed fell back and the earth opened up. He was swallowed and swallowing brown. Ed woke up from a dream with the color brown was all around. He could barely breathe as his hand touched the bucket.4."I want to touch the bucket!". Ed usually kept his thoughts to himself. "I want to touch you," he yelled. Everyone turned and stared. I happened to be there and wondered if he was losing his mind. He yelled another plea. The bucket arched out in response. Ed and the metal bucket touched and I must say I was moved. Well, I fell into the pit and landed at Ed's feet. I hung on and experienced the love, the devotion, the elation. We were all one, we are all one. united at last.5.I am the earth that had been undisturbed for 100 years till Ed and the bucket arrived. Within my chocolate brown secret was love. A love that would wound anyone who pierced my skin. I was holding this electric love till they both arrived and after the bucket had emptied my soiled heart I let them have it. Yea, all the energy was waiting for this moment to fly.